Jake Kless

Romirowsky 2nd
16 December 2015
English 101
16 December 2015
The Facts about Refugees

In less than five hours, members of the Islamic State systematically executed 130
civilians and injured 368 in a coordinated terror attack in Paris. They slaughtered men, women
and children indiscriminately and left widows, widowers, and orphans in their wake. ISIS made
it clear that they intended to smuggle more soldiers into Western countries that accepted
refugees. Five days after the incident, French President Francois Hollande announced his
intention to welcome 30,000 Syrians seeking asylum into France. Hollandes actions represent
not foolishness or weakness, but committment to values France shares with the United States: the
promotion of liberty, equality, and freedom for all people, unhindered by our own fears and
prejudices, but instead backed by love, resolve, and courage. The United States must make an
effort to welcome Syrian refugees into the nation, promoting Western values and protecting
American interests while preserving Muslim religious liberty and safety, achieving this through
understanding the facts about refugees, where they come from, and what they offer America.

Firstly, the facts show that refugees assimilate quickly and vigorously and largely end up
as citizens that benefit their surrounding communities. According to the Michigan State
Universitys Professor Barry Stein, refugees generally assimilate and adjust to new cultures in

Jake Kless
Romirowsky 2nd
16 December 2015
English 101
16 December 2015
four stages, over a period of a decade or more. Initially, they will suffer through anxiety, guilt,
and depression, side effects of abandoning their homes and an intense fall in social status. The

Department of Health, Education, and Welfare describes them soberly, as acculturated enough
to function but far from assimilated or integrated. (Stein 8) Within a relatively short period (one
to two years) refugees display an impressive drive to recover what has been lost, to rebuild their
lives (Stein 9). They often display upward socioeconomic mobility, change jobs, and often are
forced to become more agressive and innovative in their pursuits. By the fourth and fifth years,
these migrants are often resigned to their status. Stein writes that if the goal is not near or at
hand now, the refugee is likely to abandon the effort. (Stein 9) This is not to say that the refugee
will no longer be a productive member of society; more accurately, they will make peace with
their status and continue growth at a slower rate, while transferring further hopes to children and
grandchildren. By the tenth year of settlement, many refugees will have attained the station they
held in their home country, or a similar. Refugees have a history of a strong drive to become
successful in their new homes. They pursue the American Dream.

It is also important to recognize that the refugees that are to resettle in the United States
pose an infinitesmal threat to American wellbeing. For one, current examinations of criminal
behavior displayed by the resettled is roughly at the same level as it would be for normal

Jake Kless
Romirowsky 2nd
16 December 2015
English 101
16 December 2015
citizens. Thomas de Maiziere, Interior Minister of the German Federal Office of Criminal
Invesigation, has stated to the press, as reported by Reuters, that there is no disproportional
increase in crime because of the prescence of asylum seekers and refugees (Deutsche Welle 1).

In fact, theres been a major boost in violence against refugees. The Deutsche Welle reports that
the number of attacks on German refugees has doubled from July to September of 2015,
alongside a spike in Neo-Nazi demonstrations against the Syrians. (Welle 2). Yet those who push
for the denial of refugees are generally more concerned that within the incredibly small
percentage of Arabs that make it to the West, there will be members of the Islamic State as
hidden agents. There are multiple flaws with that idea; recent events and information help shed
light on the issue. In Paris, the majority of attackers were Belgian and French citizens. Infobase
reports that their only connection to Syrian refugees was found in a fake passport, which many
have considered a red herring, meant to increase Western scrutiny on refugees and promote antiMuslim rhetoric. Furthermore, ISISs propaganda strategy does not push for making it to the U.S.
through complicated and heavily regulated refugee programs, when the Huffington Post argues
that tourist visas are far easier to obtain and use. (McGonigal/Wing 2) ISIS attempts to radicalize
Western Muslims and turn them on their communities, in the style of the San Bernandino attacks,
not send soldiers on intercontinental sabotage missions. The Islamic State has more success
radicalizing people in the regions they occupy; pushing mass groups away and into safe Western

Jake Kless
Romirowsky 2nd
16 December 2015
English 101
16 December 2015
nations destroys their narrative of providing a safe haven for true believers of Islam. (Marans
4) Finally, it would be incredibly difficult for a terrorist to make it through the program. CNNs
national securitiy analyst Peter Bergen expands upon this difficulty. Firstly, only two percent of
the refugees are military-age males. (Bergen 1).

... he or she would have to be among those selected from the relatively tiny number of
23,000 refugees that the United Nations agency for refugees has flagged to the United States to
be worthy for consideration to be admitted. Then he would have to be among the only 10,000
Syrian refugees the States is planning to admit next year...then consider the tests this terrorist
would be subjected to as he attempted to clear the U.S. government screening process. As
described by senior U.S. State Department official Anne Richard at a Senate Homeland Security
Committee hearing on Thursday, a Syrian refugee trying to get into the States is scrutinized and/
or interviewed by officials from the National Counterterrorism Center, FBI, Department of
Homeland Security, State Department and the Pentagon. Syrian refugees must also give up their
biometric data, submit their detailed biographic histories and are also interviewed at length.
These refugees are also queried against a number of government databases to see if they might
pose a threat. (Berger 2-3)
It must be understood by Americans that fearing violence or radicalism from refugees is a
purely emotional reaction, and not a position supported by the facts.

Jake Kless
Romirowsky 2nd
16 December 2015
English 101
16 December 2015
Finally, it must be understood that all nations must do what they can in situations of great
need, and the need is undoubtedly great. The New York Times tracks the loss of life in the Syrian
Civil War. Four and-a-half years in, 200,000 people have been killed. Four million have fled the

nation. When rebel groups, Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president/dictator, and Islamic State
insurgencies clash, civilians are often caught in the crossfire. 28,277 civilians have died in
shootings and mass killings; in one case, the United Nations reports a group of 100 dead, 49 of
them children, executed likely by government forces, most shot at close range. (UN Security
Council 31). 27,006 civilians died in mortar, artillery, and rocket attacks perpetrated by both
sides of the conflict; while 18,866 more were killed by Syrian government warplanes and
helicopters blasting civilian targets like mosques, schools, and shopping markets. Over a
quarter of those are children. 8,871 were killed after being kidnapped, detained, and/or tortured
by either side. At least 84 were killed by the Syrian governments use of chlorine-filled bombs
and nerve agents, as well as ISISs use of mustard gas. (New York Times 6) 654 at least were
killed in Syrian attacks on hospitals. Finally, U.S. air campaigns against ISIS have killed at least
181 civilians. The Syrian people suffer, statistically, an attack on the level of the November Paris

Jake Kless
Romirowsky 2nd
16 December 2015
English 101
16 December 2015
attacks, every single day. Not every day this year, or even last year, but for almost five years
now.
When the facts point so sharply to almost genocidal conditions in Syria, extremely weak
evidence of refugees posing a threat to the U.S., and the resettled displaying a commitment to
bettering themselves and their communities, how is there even a discussion over the admittance
of refugees? There is truly a crisis in Syria, and to turn away immigrants at this time would be

tantamount to handing over innocent men, women, and children to violent rebellions, ISIS, and
President Assads famously sadistic dictatorship. The Statue of Liberty asks for the tired, the
poor, huddled masses yearning to breathe free. America must not deny her, and must not deny its
devotion to the values of liberty and freedom in this tumultous time.

Jake Kless
Romirowsky 2nd
16 December 2015
English 101
16 December 2015

WORKS CITED

"Attacks on Refugees in Germany Double in Three Months." DW.COM. Deutsche Welle, 7 Nov.
2015. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.

Bergen, Peter. "Syrian Refugees Are Not a Threat to the U.S." CNN. Cable News Network, 21
Nov. 2015. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.

Marans, Daniel. "The West Is Giving ISIS Exactly What It Wants." The Huffington Post. HPMG
News, 17 Nov. 2015. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.

Jake Kless
Romirowsky 2nd
16 December 2015
English 101
16 December 2015
Ki-moon, Ban. "Report of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict in the Syrian
Arab Republic." United Nations Security Council(2014): 15 Dec. 2015.

"Report: Refugees Have Not Increased Crime Rate in Germany." DW.COM. Deutsche Welle, 13
Nov. 2015. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.

"Should Europe and the United States Accept More Refugees from the Middle East and Africa?"
Infobase Learning. Infobase Learning, 19 Nov. 2015. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.

Stein, Barry N. "Refugees and Mental Health." THE EXPERIENCE OF BEING A REFUGEE:
INSIGHTS FROM THE RESEARCH LITERATURE (1981) 15 Dec. 2015.

Wing, Nick, and Chris McGonigal. "These Are the 'Dangerous' Syrian Refugees You've Been
Hearing About." The Huffington Post. HPMG News, 18 Oct. 2015. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.

Yourish, Karen, K.K. Rebecca Lai, and Derek Watkins. "Death in Syria." The New York Times.
The New York Times Company, 14 Sept. 2015. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.